Looking
at the number of remakes that Hollywood churns out you'd be forgiven
for thinking that original stories are in short supply.

A
closer look reveals that it's not the stories so much as the characters
that Hollywood jumps on. If there's already a clearly defined persona
out there that the public already 'knows' then, the logic goes, it's
easier to get people interested in going to see what that 'known'
character will do in a modern re-telling.

The
same logic applies to famous books and stories that already have
substance (that is, in other words, personality)
in the mind of the potential viewer. The very familiarity of old
stories lends them a mystique that can generate interest before
anything else is known about the plot.

But
there is also a theory that there are only so many plots anyway. Seven
to be precise (although that wise dude Aristotle only identified six.)
And that any story
is really only a retelling of the same basic formats established long
ago...

If
you study screen writing, for instance, you'll come across the 'hero's
journey' plot - that is, just one
story that apparently we can watch a million times and not get bored -
or even realize we're being shown the same basic story wrapped up in a
different premise over and over again.

BTW:
Film producers actually get quite sniffy if you don't have the hero's
journey clearly delineated in your plot. So the idea that you can be
original in a movie is a fairly moot point...

Aside
from that, what are the seven basic plot lines that apparently underpin
all stories?

Here
goes:

1. The Quest

You've
seen it a thousand times, especially in Fantasy stories. The hero must
overcome obstacles, enlist the help of friends, defeat enemies, all in
pursuit of some far off goal - usually the saving of the world - with
the
use of some magical artifact.

Similar
to the Quest model, the main difference being that the protagonist is
taken from his 'real' world and thrust on a journey of wonder and self
discovery in the pursuit of wisdom or psychological benefit.

The
defeat of a monster (often a metaphor for the hero's failings) is a
mainstay of this plot.

Alice in Wonderland, Gulliver's Travels,
The Odyssey, Back to the Future, Wizard of Oz - even many horror
stories use this same basic premise.

3. Rebirth

Otherwise
known as the Hero's Journey, where a protagonist must learn that
adherence to his or her past life and values will not help them grow,
change or mature. The largely symbolic 'death' of the hero usually
occurs at around the mid to three-quarter point in the story, from
which he/she rises again, stronger, wiser and in control.

Again
the antagonist, monster or bad circumstance is an analogy for the main
character's initial problems.

Every
comic book hero has rebirth at the core of their story.

Other
examples include A Christmas Carol,
Beauty and the Beast, Transformers, even most TV shows that
feature crime solving (Law and Order,
CSI, Monk etc) often contain the idea that solving the mystery
leads to a mini rebirth at the end of each case.

4. Comedy

Comedy
isn't always about what's funny. It's often about using the absurd to
make observations about people at their worst. The best comedy uses its
own internal logic to highlight inappropriate behavior that can lead to
the the same kind of resolution as the rebirth idea. Wisdom through
experience etc.

Orwell's
Keep the Aspidistra Flying,
When Harry Met Sally and many other rom coms, most TV sitcoms: The Big Bang, Two and Half Men, The Office
etc.

5. Tragedy

Usually
centers around a high status character who forced is into a situation
where they are downtrodden and the important things in their life are
taken from them. Often this is used as a starting point for a
story - leading to revenge, justice, enlightenment, liberation etc.

True
tragedy has no resolution - only the realization that self importance
can lead to pity, a sense of futility and death. Clearly not the kind
of story that sells well these days!

Much
of Shakespeare is tragic: Hamlet,
Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, but also The Godfather series, The Sopranos, even House, etc.

6. Overcoming the Monster

In
essence similar to the Voyage and Return plot except that the 'threat'
comes from within the
protagonist's world, as opposed to outside of it.

The
hero must defeat real or imagined 'monsters' to re-establish the status
quo - often by absorbing the 'evil' into their world view.

Twilight, indeed almost all vampire
stories, Jekyll and Hyde, Jaws,
James Bond stories, Hansel
and Gretel, The Hannibal series etc.

And
finally:

7. Rags to Riches

Often
the hero is plucked from seeming obscurity and given great wealth and
power only to have it taken from them. The story revolves around the
protagonist's struggle to re-acquire their new status, through the
defeat of a newfound set of obstacles.

Aladdin, Cinderella, Great Expectations,
even stories like The Matrix and Harry Potter use this plot as a
starting point.

Conclusion

I
don't know about you but reading this list, it really does look like
there's just one thread running through these seven basic plots.

And
that is the idea that a story is about transformation.

And
that unless a character is transformed
in some way by the events they experience, then there is actually
no story at all.

You
may want to mix and match the above story plots into something you can
use for your own fiction - why not? After all, it's what all great
writers (and some not so great) have been doing since writing and
storytelling began.

In
Art, there's no such thing as copying, borrowing or theft.

There's
really only re-interpretation by the individual.

And
it's not about what you do -
it's about how you do it,
well or otherwise.